Extend Permanent Protection to the Eastern Gulf Of Mexico
- by: Another Gulf Is Possible
- recipient: President Barack Obama, U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate
This petition seeks permanent protection for the Gulf of Mexico Eastern Planning Area, which is currently under moratorium until 2022, from offshore oil and gas exploration and drilling. We also strongly encourage the passage of Senate Bill 74, the Marine Oil Spill Prevention Act, which would protect a portion of the Gulf of Mexico from the threat of offshore oil drilling until at least 2027.
On Friday, November 18th the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) released its 2017-2022 five-year plan for oil and gas drilling. Thanks to the coordinated efforts of numerous grassroots and national environmental organizations, the Arctic’s Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, as well as the Atlantic Ocean, were excluded from the plan. Although Gulf Coast residents and numerous national organizations have also been extremely vocal in our desire to end new offshore drilling and transition to sustainable, renewable energy sources, the Gulf of Mexico remains in the five-year plan. The plan includes 10 region-wide leases in the Gulf of Mexico from 2017 through 2022. This announcement was a huge disappointment to those of us who live, work, and play along the Gulf of Mexico.
On Tuesday, December 20th, President Obama withdrew 115 million acres of the Arctic Ocean and 21 underwater canyons in the Atlantic Ocean from future oil and gas development placing them in permanent protection using the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act as the means to do this. Once again, the entirety of the Gulf of Mexico was left out of consideration for protection and defense.
Another Gulf Is Possible (AGIP) is a collaborative of individuals, businesses, and grassroots, frontline organizations from all five Gulf Coast states. Many of us have been working in concerted effort together since our region suffered from the country’s largest environmental disaster as a direct result of offshore drilling, Deepwater Horizon. We do not want to see this kind of disaster ever again off our shores.
Members of AGIP traveled to Washington D.C. in December to discuss this request and other issues with members of the House and Senate. As this request is a nonpartisan issue that will benefit our climate and coastal communities, we expect to have full support from all the coastal states on this matter.
The Gulf of Mexico is a unique, diverse, ecosystem that provides habitat to a wide array of species while providing a historical legacy for fisher folk, ecotourism, and a robust beach economy. While we continue to fight for the protection for all of the Gulf of Mexico, including the support of a bilateral agreement with both the United States and Mexico on the existing and new Gulf of Mexico Oil leases to ensure the safety of our gulf coast, we ask at this time for the permanent protection for the Gulf of Mexico Eastern Planning Area from offshore oil and gas exploration and drilling.
Please show your support by signing on to this petition and sharing it with others.
The Gulf of Mexico is a unique, diverse, ecosystem that provides habitat to a wide array of species while providing a historical legacy for fisher folk, ecotourism, and a robust beach economy. We ask at this time for the permanent protection for the Gulf of Mexico Eastern Planning Area from offshore oil and gas exploration and drilling.
This petition seeks permanent protection for the Gulf of Mexico Eastern Planning Area, which is currently under moratorium until 2022, from offshore oil and gas exploration and drilling. We also strongly encourage the passage of Senate Bill 74, the Marine Oil Spill Prevention Act, which would protect a portion of the Gulf of Mexico from the threat of offshore oil drilling until at least 2027.
On Friday, November 18th the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) released its 2017-2022 five-year plan for oil and gas drilling. Thanks to the coordinated efforts of numerous grassroots and national environmental organizations, the Arctic’s Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, as well as the Atlantic Ocean, were excluded from the plan. Although Gulf Coast residents and numerous national organizations have also been extremely vocal in our desire to end new offshore drilling and transition to sustainable, renewable energy sources, the Gulf of Mexico remains in the five-year plan. The plan includes 10 region-wide leases in the Gulf of Mexico from 2017 through 2022. This announcement was a huge disappointment to those of us who live, work, and play along the Gulf of Mexico.
On Tuesday, December 20th, President Obama withdrew 115 million acres of the Arctic Ocean and 21 underwater canyons in the Atlantic Ocean from future oil and gas development placing them in permanent protection using the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act as the means to do this. Once again, the entirety of the Gulf of Mexico was left out of consideration for protection and defense.
Another Gulf Is Possible (AGIP) is a collaborative of individuals, businesses, and grassroots, frontline organizations from all five Gulf Coast states. Many of us have been working in concerted effort together since our region suffered from the country’s largest environmental disaster as a direct result of offshore drilling, Deepwater Horizon. We do not want to see this kind of disaster ever again off our shores.
This request is a nonpartisan issue that will benefit our climate and coastal communities, we expect to have full support from all the coastal states on this matter. Furthermore, we have global support on this issue as you will see by the signatories below.
Sincerely,
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